Media Releases

MATHIAS CORMANN: Simon Birmingham and I… we are meeting with South Australian families and businesses today to talk with them about the impact of the carbon tax on them. The carbon tax, of course, will push up the cost of everything, it will make Australia less competitive internationally, it will cost jobs, it’ll hurt…

The latest talk of Murray-Darling reform by the Gillard Government must be backed with iron-clad guarantees of results, not represent yet another collection of meaningless words and inter-governmental agreements. Reports that Water Minister Tony Burke is preparing to hand over more control of $5.8 billion in project delivery to state governments will send…

Liberal Treasury and Environment spokesmen will shine a spotlight on the impact of Labor’s carbon tax during two days of briefings and site visits in Adelaide and Mount Gambier. Shadow Assistant Treasurer Mathias Cormann and Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for the Environment Simon Birmingham will visit numerous affected businesses and meet with business leaders…

Billions of litres in potential water savings appear to have been lost to irrigators and the environment due to Julia Gillard’s failure to progress works at the Menindee Lakes water storage, Coalition Murray-Darling Basin spokesman Simon Birmingham said today. The re-engineering of Menindee Lakes in New South Wales headed a list of Labor…

Wayne Swan should explain why he’s hiding important work about Labor’s planned carbon tax from the Australian people. Today Mr Swan has made selective references to a Productivity Commission report into carbon pricing in other countries; a report he received last week but has not yet publicly released as had been promised. …

The Coalition welcomes the released report of the House of Representatives inquiry into the impact of the Guide to the Murray-Darling Basin Plan as a way of getting Labor’s shambolic Murray-Darling process back on track, said Senator Joyce and Senator Birmingham today. “The Committee’s report clearly spelled out that the current Labor Government’s…

The Gillard Government should today release Treasury modelling on the price impacts of its proposed carbon tax, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for the Environment Simon Birmingham said today. Two major reports are due to be released today, and the Government has previously committed also to the release of Treasury modelling: “The Government has…

Labor’s complete mismanagement of the Murray-Darling process has seen reform delayed another five years said Senator Joyce and Senator Birmingham today. It was over four years ago that John Howard announced that the Commonwealth would fix the health of the Murray-Darling. Labor has mismanaged and dragged their feet on this opportunity. “State governments…

Less than two weeks before contract negotiations are supposed to have been concluded for providing Australia’s international TV service, it’s been revealed negotiations are yet to begin, Senator Simon Birmingham said today. The ABC’s current five-year Australia Network contract worth about $20 million per annum with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade…

Communications Minister Stephen Conroy, representing the Minister for Water, has refused to allow officials from the Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) to provide a copy of a contentious email to a Senate Estimates hearing in Canberra today. Peter Cosier from the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists emailed his resignation from a position on the…